Texas pharmacist runs 1:20 half marathon handcuffed

A Texas pharmacist made headlines at the Cowtown Half Marathon in Fort Worth, Texas, after completing a half marathon in handcuffs. Dr. TaMar Hicks finished the race in an hour and 20 minutes to set a new Guinness World Record for the fastest half marathon while wearing handcuffs.

Hicks, 29, finished 33rd overall, shattering the previous record of Great Britain’s Boudewijn Dominicus by nearly five minutes. His record is currently pending verification from Guinness World Records.

Despite being a pharmacist, Hicks does not recommend that you try this at home. He told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram that many people were worried about him falling. “My friends and family were worried for me,” he said.

This was not the first time Hicks attempted the handcuffed Guinness World Record. Last summer, he missed the mark by four minutes, and figured he needed to give the record another shot. “The first time I did it, I wasn’t in shape,” said Dr. Hicks. “So I started running a lot more.”

Running a half-marathon with your hands cuffed in front of you does come with challenges. “I think the difference is, like, everything was in my legs. I really couldn’t use my arms at all, and that’s kind of a weird feeling,” he remarked. Dr. Hicks comes from an athletic background, being a former NCAA collegiate middle-distance runner for Lamar University in Orange, Texas. During his time at Lamar, he had a personal best of 1:51 for 800m.

Dr. TaMar Hicks broke the world record for fastest half marathon in handcuffs by almost FIVE MINUTES at @thecowtown! His goal is to better his unofficial time of 1:20 next year.@CBSNewsTexas pic.twitter.com/rcnNekgWGW

— Dawn White (@DawnWhiteNews) February 25, 2024

The achievement has been a long time coming for Hicks, who set the ambitious goal to challenge the record in late 2022 to help him reduce stress and improve his mental health. The idea behind handcuffs is symbolic for him, showing that even if you are chained to negative thoughts, you can always overcome them.

Hicks says he isn’t done with handcuffs yet, and hopes to better his world record in his next half marathon.